The Werewolf and the Hunter
by OneVictoriousWolf
Summary: James Diamond was just an asthmatic outcast with his friend Carlos Garcia until one fateful bite changed his life forever. Jade/James. Carlos/Cat. Cat/Andre. Cat/Logan. Rated T just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**TEEN WOLF; BIG TIME RUSH AND VICTORIOUS STYLE **

**James Diamond as Scott McCall **

**Jade West as Allison Argent **

**Kendall Knight as Isaac Lahey **

**Carlos Garcia as Stiles Stilinski (He and Stiles literally have the same personality) **

**Cat Valentine as Lydia Martin **

**Logan Mitchell as Aidan **

**Tori Vega as Erica Reyes **

**Andre Harris as Jackson Whitmore **

**Robbie Shapiro as Boyd (Face it, Robbie really doesn't have any friends) **


	2. Preview

**Disclaimer: I do not own Victorious or Big Time Rush**.

James Diamond was fixing the laces of his lacrosse stick. The work is fast and precise. Fixing the last loop, James gets up and stands with the re-threaded stick. Dressed in only a pair of athletic shorts, his lithe frame may still have some filling out to do, but it's easy to see that he'll soon grow into a strikingly handsome young men with hazel eyes yet designed to melt the hearts of hopeful young girls.

Scooping a ball up from his bedroom floor, he gives the lacrosse stick a spin, testing his handiwork. A moment later, the re-threaded stick lands next to a school backpack while James pumps out a few chin-ups at the bar mounted at the doorway of his closet.

Then, toothbrush in his mouth, he reaches for the window sill to pull it down. But he stops when he hears a sound. He cocks his ear to listen again. Under the whispering wind, he hears movement...a strange shuffling noise.

He silently slips into the hallway and peers into another bed room. His mother, Melissa Diamond, late thirties, both remarkably strong and remarkably beautiful, sleeps over the covers of her bed, fully clothed as if she'd just passed out after having walked in. James eases her door shut.

The glass door to the porch slides open. Now armed with a baseball bat, James starts for the yard. Breath held tight, he moves cautiously off the porch steps.

The sound of movement stops him cold.

Holding still, he peers left and right as he white-knuckles the bat, ready to swing. When his eyes wander up to the side of the house he sees a dark figure climbing the vine wrapped trellis. Before James even knows what's happening, the figure breaks free and comes hurtling towards him.

James hollers in terror as an upside down face appears in front of him. He almost swings the bat before realizing who it is.

"Carlos! What the hell are you doing?" He asked loudly.

"You weren't answering your phone..." He notices the bat gripped in James' hand. "Why do you have a bat?"

"I thought you were a predator."

"A pre..." Carlos didn't believe what he had just said.

Feet caught in the trellis, Carlos hangs in front of James. A sixteen year-old with boundless energy, he continues talking upside down as if this were a perfectly normal way to have a conversation.

"I know it's late, but you gotta' hear this. I saw my dad leave twenty minutes ago. Dispatch called. They'rebringing in every officer from the Los Angeles department and even State police." Carlos informed him still hanging upside down.

"For what?" James asks.

"Two joggers found a body in the woods."

"They found a dead body?"

"No, they found a body of water." Carlos gets up after falling. "Yes, dumb-ass, a dead body."

Reaching up to pull himself free of the trellis, he lands on his feet in front of James.

"You mean like murdered?"

"Nobody knows yet. Just that it was a girl, probably in her twenties.

"Hold on. If they found a body, what are they looking for now?

"That's the best part. They only found half." Carlos smacks his lips and smirks. "We're going."

Soon, a beat-up jeep skids to a halt just beyond the heavily wooded entrance to the Los Angeles preserve. Carlos gets out with a flashlight in hand. James follows, hurrying to keep up with him as he charges into the hiking paths.

"Are we seriously doing this?" James asks.

"You're the one always witching that nothing ever happens in this town. Besides, it's our last night of summer freedom."

"I was trying to get a good night's sleep for practice tomorrow."

"Right, because sitting on the bench is such a grueling effort."

"No because I'm playing this year. In fact, I'm going to make starting lineup." James informed him.

"That's the spirit. Everyone should have a dream even a pathetically unrealistic one."

"Just out of curiosity, which half of the body are we looking for?" James asks.

"Huh. I didn't even think about that."

"And what if whoever killed the girl is still out here?"

"Also something I didn't think about."

"Comforting to know you planned this out with your usual attention to detail."

Racing up the paths, James' breath begins to shorten. "Maybe the severe asthmatic should be the one holding the flashlight."

Carlos slows, but not because of James. Outside a clearing, yellow police tape marks off a perimeter under floodlights.

Grinning, Carlos looks to James who can't help grinning back. Crouching low, they circle the crime scene looking for the best vantage point. But they freeze at the sound of zipper being pulled up on a body bag. Two bare feet are momentarily visible as the zipper pulls closed and officers lift the body up into the Medical Examiner's van.

"Is that the second half of the body?" James was curious.

"No, they would've called off the search. Come on."

He and James retreat from the perimeter back into the dark of the woods. As they crest a hill, James pauses. Below, flashlight beams scour the shadows, the police search just ahead. Unable to stand still, Carlos races forward.

"Carlos, wait up." James calls out for Carlos. But quickly running out of air, James pulls out his inhaler from his jacket. While he pauses to take a hit from it, Carlos disappears up ahead. Then, realizing he's left James behind, he slows to look back when barking spins him around.

Fanged teeth snap ferociously at him, sending him staggering away and falling right onto his butt. Search dogs yank back against their leashes just before tearing them apart. "Stay right there!" A state trooper calls out.

James freezes. It's not him the State Trooper was yelling at, however. Peering out from behind a tree, he sees Carlos has run right into a search party. Flashlight beams in his eyes, the boy puts his hand in the air as large, threatening figures hurry forward.

Deputy Garcia steps into the light past the growling search dogs. Carlos shrinks under his glare. "Hold on, hold on, this little delinquent belongs to me. Son, do you listen in on all of my phone calls?"

"No... Not the boring ones."

"And where's your usual partner in crime?"

"Who? James? James is at home. He said he wanted to get a good night's sleep for the first day back at school."

"James? You out there?" Deputy Garcia calls out.

Hidden in the shadows, James doesn't move.

"All right, young man, I'm taking you back to your car and we're going to discuss a little something called Invasion of Privacy." Deputy Garcia was still suspicious.

Watching Carlos get escorted away, James steps out from the cover of the trees with an irritated sigh.

Starting back, he tries to find his way out of the woods, but with each step, it becomes increasingly difficult to see in the pitch black.

At a fork in the path, he pauses in confusion. He's about to start of down one direction when he hears a rustling among the trees.

He holds still. Breath tightening more from fear than asthma, he reaches into his pocket for his inhaler when he hears an odd rumbling. The sound of sudden and furious movement rising in volume velocity until half a dozen deer charge out of the darkness, soaring past him with the thunderous beet of hooves trampling the ground.

Startled, James drops the inhaler.

Then, once again alone in the dark, he kneels down to the leaf-covered ground to search for the inhaler. Pulling out his cellphone, he lights the display.

Guiding the phone's light over the ground, James doesn't find his inhaler but does manage to briefly illuminate a face.

Dead eyes peer up from the pale, yet beautiful face of a young woman torn in half.

Crying out in shock, James lurches up, tripping on his own feet and tumbling over the unearthed roots of a tree. Suddenly, he's propelled down a leaf-covered slope, rolling head over heels right into a creek bed.

Pushing himself up from the icy water, a breathless James looks up at the embankment down which he just fell. He's about to stand when a low growl stops him moving, and stops him breathing. Something crouches in the shadows right near him. It was something very large.

James slowly begins to turn around when a shape hurtles toward him.

For the briefest instant there's a flash of razor-sharp twists forward, crying out. Then, seeming to disentangle himself from the attacking animal, he scrambles back to his feet and into a panicked run.

Whipping through branches tearing at his skin and clothes, he races blindly through the forest until he reaches a barbed wire fence.

With barely a second to coordinate his effort, James lurches over the wire, shirt catching and tearing across the barbs.

Crashing out of the woods and into the road, James whirls around to face an oncoming car. The driver swerves, almost clipping him. Horn blaring, the car hurtles past.

Breathless, James backs away from the woods. With the world spinning around him, dark blood sticks his tattered shirt to his back over a deep and vicious looking bite.

Struggling for calm, he whips around when he hears the strangest sound. THE HOWLING OF A WOLF. It echoes through the hills, over the trees, across the rooftops, and into the night...


	3. Wolf Moon

**Jade West as Allison Argent **

**James Diamond as Scott McCall **

**Cat Valentine as Lydia Martin **

**Carlos Garcia as Stiles Stilinski **

**Tori Vega as Erica Reyes **

**Kendall Knight as Isaac Lahey (he might be OCC)**

**Beck Oliver as Derek Hale **

**Andre Harris as Jackson Whitmore **

**Robbie Shapiro (Face it; Robbie really **_**doesn't **_**have any friends. Friends don't insult you or allow someone to hurt you (Ex. In a Film by Dale Squires, Beck was fixing Robbie's car and when the cheerleading squad came up and sprayed them with water, Beck told them to make it harder. Not really best friend material)**

**Pairings: Jades, Carat **

**A/N: Some characters **_**might **_**be OCC. **

"_So, is that a yes on a second chance?" _

James Diamond was fixing the laces of his lacrosse stick. The work is fast and precise. Fixing the last loop, Kendall gets up and stands with the re-threaded stick. Dressed in only a pair of athletic shorts, his lithe frame may still have some filling out to do, but it's easy to see that he'll soon grow into a strikingly handsome young man with deep green eyes yet designed to melt the hearts of hopeful young girls.

Scooping a ball up from his bedroom floor, he gives the Lacrosse stick a spin, testing his handiwork. A moment later, the re-threaded stick lands next to a school backpack while James pumps out a few chin-ups at the bar mounted at the doorway of his closet.

Then, toothbrush in his mouth, he reaches for the window sill to pull it down. But he stops when he hears a sound. He cocks his ear to listen again. Under the whispering wind, he hears movement, a strange shuffling noise.

James silently slips into the hallway and peers into another bed room. His mom, Brooke Diamond, late thirties, both remarkably strong and remarkably beautiful, sleeps over the covers of her bed, fully clothed as if she'd just passed out after having walked in. James eases her door shut.

The glass door to the porch slides open. Now armed with a baseball bat, James starts for the yard. Breath held tight, he moves cautiously off the porch steps. The sound of movement stops him cold.

Holding still, he peers both ways as he white-knuckles the bat, ready to swing. When his eyes wonder up to the side of the house, he sees a dark figure climbing the vine wrapped trellis. Before James even knows what's happening, the figure breaks free and comes hurtling towards him. He almost swings the bat before realizing it's his childhood best friend, Carlos Garcia.

"Carlos!" James screamed. "What the hell are you doing?"

"You weren't answering your phone!" Carlos shouted before noticing the bat. "Why do you have a bat?"

"I thought you were a predator."

"A pre..." Carlos scoffed. Feet caught in the trellis, he hangs in front of James. A sixteen year old with boundless energy, he continues talking upside down as if this were a perfectly normal way to have a conversation. "I know it's late, but you gotta hear this. I saw my dad leave twenty minutes ago. Dispatch called; they're bringing in every officer from the Los Angeles department and even State Police."

"For what?" James wonders.

"Two joggers found a body in the woods."

"They found a dead body?"

"No, they found a body of water." Carlos answers sarcastically. "Yes, dumbass, it was a dead body." Reaching up to pull himself free of the trellis, he lands on his feet in front of James.

"You mean like murdered?"

"Nobody knows yet." Carlos responded. "They just know that it was a girl, probably in her twenties."

"Hold on, if they found a body, what are they looking for now?"

"That's the best part; they only found _half_." Carlos smacks his lips and smirks. "We're going."

Soon, a beat-up jeep skids to a halt just beyond the heavily wooded entrance to the Los Angeles preserve. Carlos gets out with a flashlight in hand. James follows, hurrying to keep up with him as he charges into the hiking paths.

"Are we seriously doing this?" James asked.

"You're the one always witching that nothing ever happens in this town. Besides, it's our last night of summer freedom."

"I was trying to get a good night's sleep for practice tomorrow."

"Right because sitting on the bench is such a grueling effort."

"No, because I'm playing this year; in fact, I'm going to make starting lineup."

"That's the spirit!" Carlos exclaims. "Everyone should have a dream, even a pathetically unrealistic one."

"Just out of curiosity, which half of the body are we looking for?"

"Huh, I didn't even think about that."

"What if whoever killed the girl is still out here?"

"That's also something I didn't think about."

"It's comforting to know you planned this out with your usual attention to detail." James commented. Racing up the paths, his breath begins to shorten. "Maybe the severe asthmatic should be the one holding the flashlight."

Carlos slows, but not because of James. Outside a clearing, yellow police tape marks off a perimeter under floodlights. Grinning, Carlos looks to James who can't help grinning back. Crouching low, they circle the crime scene, looking for the best vantage point. But they freeze at the sound of zipper being pulled up on a body bag. Two bare feet are momentarily visible as the zipper pulls close and officers lift the body up into the Medical Examiner's van.

"Is that the second half of the body?"

"No, they would've called off the search." Carlos responded. "Come on." He and James retreat from the perimeter back into the dark of the woods. As they crest a hill, James pauses. Below, flashlight beams scour the shadows, the police search just ahead. Unable to stand still, Carlos races forward.

"Carlos, wait up." James calls out to him, but Carlos doesn't wait. Quickly running out of air, James pulls out his inhaler from his jacket. While he pauses to take a hit from it, Carlos disappears up ahead. Then, realizing he's left James behind, he slows to look back when barking spins him around.

Fanged teeth snap ferociously at him, sending him staggering away and falling right onto his butt. Search dogs yank back against their leashes just before tearing them apart. "Stay right there!" A state trooper calls out.

James freezes. It's not him the state trooper was yelling at, however. Peering out from behind a tree, he sees Carlos has run right into a search party. Flashlight beams in his eyes; the boy puts his hands in the air as large, threatening figures hurry forward.

Deputy Garcia steps into the light past the growling search dogs. Carlos shrinks under his glare, "Hang on, hang on, this little delinquent belongs to me. Son, do you listen in on all my phone calls?"

"No, not the boring ones." Carlos admits, trying to see through the now pouring rain.

"And where's your usual partner in crime?"

"Who, James...? James is at home. He said he wanted to get a good night's sleep for the first day back at school."

Deputy Garcia calls out, "James, you out there?" Hidden in the shadows, James doesn't move. "Alright, young man, I'm taking you back to your car and we're going to discuss a little something we like to call _Invasion of Privacy_." Deputy was still suspicious.

Watching Carlos get escorted away, James steps out from the cover of the trees with an irritated sigh. Starting back, he tries to find his way out of the woods, but with each step, it becomes increasingly difficult to see in the pitch black. At a fork in the path, he pauses in confusion. He's about to start off down one direction when he hears a rustling among the trees. James holds still. Breath tightening more from fear than asthma, he reaches into his pocket for his inhaler when he hears an odd rumbling. The sound of sudden and furious movement rising in volume velocity until half a dozen deer charge out of the darkness, soaring past him with the thunderous beat of hooves trampling the ground. Startled, James drops the inhaler.

Then, once again alone in the dark, he kneels down to the leaf-covered ground to search for the inhaler. Pulling out his cellphone, he lights the display. Guiding the phone's light over the ground, James doesn't find his inhaler, but does manage to briefly illuminate a face. Dead eyes peer from the pale, yet beautiful face of a young woman torn in half.

Crying out in shock, James lurches up, tripping on his own feet and tumbling over the unearthed roots of a tree. Suddenly, he's propelled down a leaf covered slope, rolling head over heels right into a creek bed.

Pushing himself up from the icy water, a breathless James looks up at the embankment down which he just fell. He's about the stand when a low growl stops him moving and breathing. Something crouches in the shadows right near him. It was something very large. James slowly begins to turn around when a shape hurtles toward him. For the briefest instant, there's a flash of razor-sharp teeth. James twists forward, crying out. Then, seeming to disentangle himself from the attacking animal, he scrambles back to his feet and into a panicked run.

Whipping through branches tearing at his skin and clothes, he races blindly through the forest until he reaches a barbed wire fence. With barely a second to coordinate his effort, he lurches over the wire, shirt catching and tearing across the barbs. Crashing out of the woods and into the road, James whirls to face an oncoming car. The driver swerves, almost clipping him. Horn blaring, the car hurtles past.

Breathless, James steps away from the woods. With the world spinning around him, dark blood sticks his tattered shirt to his back over a deep vicious looking bite. Struggling for calm, he whips around when he hears the strangest sound, the howling of a wolf; it echoes through the hills, over the trees, across the rooftops, and into the night.

_**[First Day of School]**_

A school bell rings in the crowded hallway. At their lockers, James takes off his backpack and pulls his shirt up a few inches to show Carlos the bandage on his lower abdomen. "It was too dark to see much, but I'm pretty sure it was a wolf."

"...a wolf bit you? No, there's not a chance."

"I heard a wolf howling."

"No, you didn't."

"What do you mean 'No, I didn't'? How do you know what I heard?"

Carlos responds, "California doesn't have wolves; not for the last sixty years."

"Really...?"

"Yes, really, there are no wolves in California."

"Well, if you don't believe me about the wolf, then you're definitely not going to believe me when I tell you that I saw the body." James confessed, making Carlos' jaw drop.

"You, what, are you kidding me?"

"I wish." James answered. "I'm going to have nightmares about it for a month."

"That's freaking awesome. This is seriously the best thing that's happened to this town since..." Carlos trails off, looking away to see a red-headed girl walking down the corridor. "Since the birth of Cat Valentine, who's walking towards us right now,"

A drop dead gorgeous junior named Cat Valentine walks the hallway like it was a fashion show runway in Milan. "Hey, Cat, how are you? You look..." Cat just walks right past him. "...like you're going to ignore me." James cracks up, making Carlos glare at him. "You're the cause of this you know? Dragging me down to your nerd depths, I'm a nerd by association. I've been scarlet-nerded by you."

Blending into the crowd, they head to first period.

_**[First Period: English]**_

James takes the desk next to Carlos as the teacher walks in, speaking, "As you all know by now, there was indeed a body found in the woods last night. I'm sure your eager little minds are coming up with all sorts of macabre scenarios as to how it happened, but I've been told that the police have a suspect in custody." James looks to Carlos who just shrugs news to him as well. "A vagrant with a long history of psychiatric disorders was discovered camping out in the woods near where the body was found which means your undivided attention can be given to the syllabus outlining the semester on your desks. Read it now; and by read, I don't mean skim."

The sound of paper pages flipping rumbles toward James as students start reading. It's strangely loud, causing his ears to twitch especially when a cell phone rings. He glances up. The other students quietly read the syllabus. James appears to be the only one noticing the ringing. Gazing about, he can't seem to find the source until his eyes fall on the windows of the classroom. Across the quad, James sees Jade West, sixteen and radiating with an innocent beauty. When she puts a cell phone to her ear, it becomes obvious that, despite the closed window and the distance, this is the ringing James is somehow able to hear.

More astonishingly, James can hear both Jade and her caller, their voices echoing with a tinny effect. (Jade - Italics, Caller - Bold, Principal - Underlined).

"_Mom, three calls on my first day is a little overdoing it." _

"**I'm just making sure you're there okay and you got everything you need." **

But Jade digs through her bag, becoming alarmed, _"I have everything except a pen. Oh, my god, I didn't actually forget a pen." _

"**Don't panic; I'm sure you can borrow one from another student." **

"_Okay, okay, I gotta do. Love ya." _Unable to take his eyes off the extraordinary girl, James watches as the school's principal joins her on the steps.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." The principal guides her across the quad, their conversation becoming clearer to James with every step. "So you were saying San Francisco isn't where you grew up?"

"_No, but we stayed for more than a year which is unusual in my family. We always bounce around a lot because of my dad's work." _Even when Jade and the principal disappear from view, James hears the clatter of the building door opening, the clicking of their heels on the tile floor of the hall.

"Well, hopefully, Los Angeles is your last stop for a while." The door opens, causing the rest of the class t look up. Jade and the principal walk in. "Class, this is our new student, Jade West. Please do your best to make her feel welcome."

James barely breathes as Jade heads for the one empty desk left in the room; right behind him. She puts her notebook down, and then glances up to see James turned toward her, holding out a pen. With a relieved, but curious smile, she takes it from him. "Thanks." He gives her a nod. Turning around, his gaze focuses on Carlos' desk where his friend's sunglasses sit. In the mirrored lenses, James can see Jade reflected behind him and he can't take his eyes off her.

"Okay, let's begin with Kafka's Metamorphosis."

_**[Cafeteria]**_

Silence then the doors of the cafeteria push open. As James steps in, the cacophony of the high school lunch period slams into him and every sound assaults him with pin-drop clarity. "Are you alright?" Carlos asks James, who is just standing there. Overwhelmed, James doesn't even hear him. His hands come up to his ears to cover when he sees Jade in the room, paying for her food.

The cashier breaks a roll of quarters, but the coins spill to the floor. James hears each one plink against the tile. Jade immediately kneels to help the humiliated cashier, giving a good-hearted smile to the grateful woman while the other students just stand by and wait impatiently. Then Jade notices James and they connect eyes. Somehow, just this look from her seems to return his hearing to normal. She starts to smile back, recognizing him. But Cat Valentine swoops in front of her. (Jade - Italic, Cat - Bold, Andre - Underlined).

"**That jacket is absolutely killer. Where did you get it?" **

"_My mom was a buyer for a boutique back in San Francisco." _

"**You're my new best friend. You're sitting with me." **Taking Jade by the arm, she guides her to the popular table. Andre Harris, Cat's boyfriend, pulls her toward his lap, but she brushes him off, still talking to Jade. A few tables away, James sits with Carlos and their friend, Jo Taylor.

Annoyed, Jo asks, "Can somebody tell me how the new girl is here all of five minutes and she's already at Cat's table?"

"That's because she's hot." Carlos argued. "Beautiful people herd together."

"Is that why Cat's not herding with you?"

"Cat is a long-term project, okay? And trust me; I've got all the patience in the world for a high yield investment like her."

"Well, I don't think the New Girl is that pretty. James, do you think she's pretty?" She asks. He doesn't even blink, attention consumed by Jade. "James?"

"I'd take that as a yes." Carlos smirks. Head cocked slightly, James tunes into the conversation across the room, voices coming into focus. (Jade - Italics, Andre - Underlined, Cat - Bold).

"_A party...?' _

"It's Friday night. We could go together."

"_I can't. It's Family Night this Friday, but thanks for asking." _

"Are you sure? Everyone's going after the scrimmage game."

"_You mean like football?" _

"Football is a joke at Hollywood Arts. The sport here is Lacrosse. We won the state championship the last three years."

"**Because of a certain captain..." **

"Every season starts with a scrimmage to decide the new first string. Do you ever watch lacrosse?"

"_I'm not sure there's another way to play it...well, violently." _Carlos notices James watching Cat's table intently; not merely staring, but seeming at listen.

"Maybe you should just come see for yourself. We have practice today. You don't have to be anywhere after school, do you?"

"_Well, no..." _

"**Perfect. You're coming." **

[Lacrosse Practice]

A whistle blows and the Lacrosse team's Assistant Coach gathers the team on the field, Carlos and James are lagging alone. Carlos asks, "Just think about this; if you play, I'll have no one to talk to on the bench. You're really going to do that to your best friend?"

"I can't sit out again. My whole life is sitting on the sidelines. This season, I make first string."

Heading for the field, he pauses to notice Cat climbing the bleachers, and stepping right behind her is Jade. "Diamond, you're on goal!" The Coach shouts at James. He trots over to the coach, a man with little comprehension of the difficulties of teenage life.

"But I never played goal."

"I know, but scoring some shots will give the boys a confidence boost. It's a first day back thing. Get them energized, jazzed up."

"What about me?" James asks.

"Try not to take any in the face." Stepping into the net, James glances to the bleachers where Jade watches with Cat, eyes focusing on them."

"_Him...? I'm not sure who he is. Why?" _

"_He's in my English class." _Jade responds. James looks up, shocked to hear Jade asking about him, but with his hearing momentarily turned up; he flinches at the whistle blow, sound ringing through his skull. One of the bigger player's charge forward as the Assistant Coach passes the ball to him. Catching it, he whips the stick forward, hurling the ball toward the goal. Still reeling from the whistle, James looks up too late to see the ball soaring toward him. It bounces right off the helmet and into the net. The team laughs wickedly, even the Coach snickers.

With cheeks burning under his mask, James steals himself for the next player. When the whistle blows again, he's ready. The Assistant Coach passes the ball to the player, who catches it and fires it right at the goal. James moves startlingly fast, almost an instantaneous reaction. Then he notices the player staring at him with a mixture of disappointment and surprise. James has the ball; he caught it. When the next player takes the shot, James catches the ball again, and then again, and again. Nothing can get past him. In the bleachers, Jade and Cat sit forward.

"He seems like he's pretty good." Jade complimented.

"Very good," Cat adds. Intrigued, Cat keeps her gaze locked on James who now stands with a far more confident posture until Andre pushes to the head of the line. Glaring at James, he practically strangles the Lacrosse stick with his gloves. The Assistant Coach tosses the ball up. Andre launches forward, catching the ball and spinning around to fire it at the goal. But James moves with supernatural precision. The ball lands right in the pocket of the goalie's stick.

Carlos lets out a holler, jumping on the bench. In the bleachers, Cat stands and gives a whoop as well, causing Andre to throw a look at her. She returns his glare with a sly smile, a warning to step up his game. Grinning, James gives the goalie stick a whirl, spinning it with a flick of his wrist and sending the ball soaring right into the pocket of the stunned Assistant Coach's stick.

_**[Forest]**_

James retraces his steps from last night with Carlos following closely behind him. James explains the experience at school and Lacrosse practice, "I don't know what it was. I mean, I felt like I had all the time in the world to catch the ball. And that's not the only weird thing; I mean, I can hear stuff I shouldn't be able to hear and I can smell things."

"You can smell things like what?" Carlos asked.

"Things like the mint mojito gum in your pocket."

"I don't have any." Carlos pulls out a lint-covered piece of wrapped gum. Carlos just shrugs and continues, putting it back in his pocket. "So, all this started with the bite?"

"What if it's an infection and my body is flooding with adrenaline before I fall into shock?" James questioned. "I knew I should've gone to the E.R."

"I've actually heard of this." Carlos responded. "It's a specific kind of infection."

"Are you serious?"

"All symptoms add up; I think it's called _Lycanthropy._"

"What's that? Is that bad? It sounds bad."

"It is, but only once a month."

"It happens only once a month?"

"Yeah, it happens on the night of the full moon."

"You're an ass." James slaps him on the arm, getting what he meant. Carlos chuckles and catches his balance.

Carlos defends himself, "Hey, you're the one who heard a wolf howling."

"There could be something seriously wrong with me." James states.

"I know! You're a werewolf!" Carlos shouts. "Okay, obviously I'm kidding, but if you see me in shop class melting down all the silver I can find, it's because Friday is a full moon."

James glances around, "I swear this was it. The body was here, the deer came running, I dropped my inhaler..."

Carlos suggests, "Maybe the killer moved the body."

"If he did, I hope he left my inhaler. Those things are like eighty bucks."

Carlos taps him on the arm, bringing his attention to a figure standing just a few yards away. Beck Oliver, nineteen and unquestionably handsome, has a rougher look than the cleanly shaven Los Angeles boys.

Beck asks, "What are you doing here?" Both James and Carlos are too stunned to speak at first. Beck continues. "This is private property."

Carlos responds, "Sorry we didn't know."

"We were just looking for something. Forget it. Sorry to bother you." James apologizes. As they're turning to go, Beck tosses an object to James, which was his inhaler. When he looks up, Beck is already walking away. James turns to Carlos, "Come on, I have to work."

"Dude," Carlos stops him. "That was Beck Oliver. You remember, right? He's only a few years older than us."

"What?" James asks his friend who is suddenly interested about the guy they seen just seconds ago.

"His family; they all burned to death in a fire like six years ago. I remember the cops pulling him out to tell him."

"I wonder what he's doing back." James eyes the inhaler in his hand, closing his fist in it.

_**[Veterinary Clinic]**_

Inside the town's lone veterinary clinic, James flips the sign on the door to CLOSED and then grabs a few packages off the reception desk. The door to a storage room opens in the corridor. James backs out, hauling a huge bag of kitty litter. Setting it against the wall, he takes out a set of keys and unlocks the next door. But just before pulling it open, he pauses, hand gripping the doorknob as he listens to the utterly silent clinic. And then he hears it, rain, the pattering of drops on the roof.

He twists the knob and opens the door. He barely has a foot inside the room when the cages filled with cats come alive with activity. The frightened felines suddenly bare their teeth, hissing and clawing frenetically at the cage doors. All of them focused on James, their backs arched, struck with absolute terror. Stunned, he staggers out of the room, slamming the door shut.

Retreating into the waiting room, James can still hear the pandemonium coming from the inside when a hammering spins him around. Standing outside and banging on the glass door with her fist is Jade. Rain-soaked, it's nevertheless easy to see that she's crying and in a visible panic. Quickly unlocking the door, James lets her in as she tries to explain through tears what happened.

"I didn't see it." Jade suddenly says. "I took two seconds to switch songs on my iPod and this dog...it came out of nowhere."

"Okay, it's alright. Do you remember where it happened so I can send out animal control to find it?"

"No. I mean, yes. I know where I hit it, but the dog..."

"Right where is it?"

"It's in my car." Following Jade to her car under the now drizzling rain, James opens the back seat door to reveal an injured stray. Hackles raised, the frightened lab mix is clearly in pain. Jade reaches in to pick him up, but the dog snaps at her. She flinches back, stepping right into James' arms.

"You okay?" He asks her. She nods, looking up at James behind her, his hands on her forearms, fingers lightly touching her soft skin. He assures her, "He's just frightened."

Jade remarks, "That makes two of us."

"Let me see if I have better luck." Once he lets her go, he steps toward the open door, oddly calm.

"Careful." She warns. As he connects eye with the dog, something happens. A sound drops out around him all except for the dog's nervous panting. Then its harsh gasps begin to ease as some sort of primal communication occurs between them. For the briefest moment, his eyes take on a strangely yellow tint, like that of a wolf. In response, the dog lowers its body submissively, yielding to the obviously dominant animal. With Jade watching in amazement, James gathers the dog into his arms and carries him into the vet's office. Inside, James gently lays the injured animal down on the examining table. Jade stays back, watching him inspect the dog while petting it, doing an expert job of calming it.

"I think his leg is broken." James speaks. "I can splint it now and give him a painkiller. The doctor can take a look in the morning."

Jade steals glances at him, looking on with admiration as she works. But James doesn't notice, terrified to glance at the beautiful girl. When he finally does look up, he sees she's hugging herself, soaked and obviously freezing.

"I have a T-shirt in my bag." He offers."

"Oh, I don't want to trouble you." But James is already reaching into his bag for the shirt. She takes it with a small smile. When she steps in the hall for privacy, James can't help but notice her reflection in a wall mirror. As she's pulling the wet shirt off, he catches sight of her bare back. Looking away, James notices the dog staring up at him.

"What?" He whispers. "I didn't see anything."

The dog doesn't look convinced. Jade comes back, now wearing his shirt and no longer shivering.

"Thanks for doing this." Jade started to speak. "I feel really stupid?"

"How come...?" James asked.

"I don't know; for freaking out like a total girl."

James states, "You _are _a girl."

"I freaked out like a girly girl. I'm not a girly girl."

James asks, "What kind of girl are you?"

"I'm tougher than that...at least I thought I was."

"I'd be freaked out too. In fact, I'd probably cry." James teased. "And not like a man. I'd cry like the girlish girl cry. It'd be pathetic."

"Yeah, whatever," He gets a laugh out of her.

James finishes wrapping the dog's leg, "So it looks like he's going to live and I'm pretty sure he'll even let you pet him if you want."

"I don't think so."

"Come on. You don't want him to sue. This breed is very litigious." Jade approaches and tentatively reaches out to stroke the dog's neck. Calm now, the dog even licks her hand. "See? He likes you."

He watches Jade, unable to take his eyes off of her. She notices his stare, "What?"

"Sorry. You have an eyelash on your cheek."

"Oh, it's from the crying." She wipes at her cheek, but the lash is still there. He shakes his head. She tries again; still there. So James reaches with his thumb to brush the lash. "Thanks."

He nods, hand coming down like he's quite not sure what to do with it. After their moment, he walks her back to her car when he suddenly asks a question when she opens the car door.

"I was wondering, I mean, is it really Family Night on Friday or do you think maybe you'd like to go to that party with me?"

She throws him a curious look and admits, "Family Night was a total lie."

"So, is that a yes, you'll go?"

"Definitely yes..."

_**[Later]**_

Tearing down the road on his bike, a huge smile nearly splits James' face in half. He's ecstatic, jubilant, but not for long. He slows, smile fading, something has caught his attention. He eases to a stop on the rain-slick road and holds still. Turning his head up, he takes a quick whiff of the air. Slowly, he turns around to find dark surrounding him on all sides. The rode is completely empty and strangely quiet. Then the sound of movement catches his ear. He turns, peering into the forest; nothing. He starts pedaling again, glancing to each side of him as he picks up speed.

Then he notices a shadow moving through the woods, keeping pace with him. When he starts pedaling faster, that strange loping silhouette moves just as fast. Pedaling harder and harder, James pushes the bike to its limits, steel chain threatening to come off. The shadow slows, letting him get ahead. Not at all relieved, James keeps going, looking back to see something large and fast crossing the road just a few yards behind him, diving into the dark of the woods. Now on the other side of the road and driving James' panic higher and higher, it keeps pace with him once again until it disappears.

A breathless James gives a last glance back to the woods on both sides, then forward where a truck veers out in front of him, an eighteen wheeler coming from a side of the road. James hits the breaks, the truck looming before him. Bike crashing against the hood of the cab, it flips and smacks him on the road, metal scraping pavement as it clatters to a stop. The driver jumps out, glancing around in panic, but there's no one on the ground. He finally peers up where James stands on top of the car.

"What the hell?" The driver is shocked. Breathless, James is too stunned to even answer.

_**[Lacrosse Practice] **_

Amid the players rushing the field, a very late Carlos finds James in the crowd and hurries toward him. "James, wait up! You gotta hear this."

"I'm playing the first elimination, Carlos. Can't it wait?" James asks.

"Just hold on. I overheard my dad on the phone. The fiber analysis report came back from the department and they found animal hairs on the body from the woods."

"Carlos, I have to go."

"You're not going to believe what the animal was." But with his helmet on, James disappears in the crowd of other players rushing the field, leaving Carlos to say the next words to himself, "It was a wolf."

"Alright, gather around," Out on the field, the coach shouts for the players. James glances back to the bleachers and spots Jade next to Cat. She gives him a quick wave and a smile. He holds up a hand to wave back. "You got a question, Diamond?" Coach asks.

"What?" James looks over to him.

"You raised your hand."

"Oh, no I was just..." James pauses. "Nothing, sorry,"

The coach turns his attention to the rest of the team, "Alright, you know how this goes. If you don't make the cut, you're most likely warming the bench the rest of the season. But make first string and you play, your parents are proud, your girlfriend loves you, everything else is cream cheese. Now show me what you got."

The whistle blows and the game begins. The pace is fast and brutal. When the ball gets passed to James, Andre comes right after him. Lacrosse sticks smacking down on his gloves, James tumbles forward and slams to the ground, kicking dirt up around him. The whistle stops the play. Andre stands over James, glowering down at him as he picks the ball up with a gloved hand. Teeth clenched behind his mask, James pushes himself off the ground.

Coach gives the whistle a sharp blow, starting the next play. James and Andre find themselves staring across from each other at the draw, crouched down with their sticks, waiting for the Assistant Coach to drop the ball.

At the whistle, James moves with shocking speed, grabbing the ball right out from under Andre. At the benches, Carlos stands, slowly moving to the sidelines to watch. James charges the length of the field. Defense lashes out with their sticks, but he parries expertly. Andre catches up and makes a furious stab at stealing the ball. Then with defense converging on him, James twists his lacrosse stick around, keeping the ball safely in the pocket while he literally flips forward, leaning right over the heads of the defensive players. Feet landing on the turf, he whirls around, tossing the ball in an over the shoulder shot past the goalie and right into the net.

The crowd in the bleachers roar with cheering, Jade on her feet along with everyone else except Carlos.

"Diamond, get over here!" Coach shouts. He trots over to the Coach, all eyes on him. "What the hell was that? This is a Lacrosse field. Are you trying out for the gymnastics team?"

"No, Coach."

"Then what the hell was that?"

"I don't know." James answered. "I was just trying to make the shot."

"Well, you made the shot, and guess what? You just made lineup." Cheers erupt around him. As team members slap him on the back and knock his helmet with their gloves, a deliriously happy James doesn't even notice Andre's furious stare or Chase watching with a worrying expression.

_**[Carlos' Room]**_

Fingers click furiously over a keyboard. Eyes locked on his computer screen, Carlos bounces from one webpage to the next. Words and images pop up on the screen, flashing across his face: _Wolfsbane, Silver Bullets, Lycan, Aconite, _drawings of werewolves in different forms, one mostly human, another massive fur-coated creature and yet another appearing as a normal wolf. Image after image, page after page while the sun is setting on Los Angeles and a full moon begins to rise.

As his room darkens, an increasingly panicked Carlos watches a sheet of paper come out of his printer; a detailed carving of a medieval hunter standing over the body of a werewolf, aiming a crossbow at the creature. He pulls the page out, staring at it with a look of escalating fear when someone knocks on the door Carlos practically leaps out of his chair. Rushing to the door, he unlocks and opens it to see James standing in the doorway.

"Get in." He pushes James into the room. "You have to see this. I've been reading websites, books and all this information." He says, sitting across from James, who had taken a seat on the foot of the bed. As James takes off his jacket, Carlos starts grabbing printouts from his desk, pulling his computer screen around and dozens of webpages on it.

"How much Adderall have you had?" James asked, concerned for the seemingly hyper Carlos.

"I've had a lot, but that doesn't matter. Just listen to this."

"Is this about the body?" James asked. "Did they find who did it?"

"No, they're still questioning people, even Beck Oliver, the guy from the woods. But that's not it."

"What then?"

"Remember the joke the other day?" Carlos questioned. "It's not a joke anymore. The wolf, the bite in the woods; I started doing all this reading and do you even know why a wolf howls?"

"Should I?"

"It's a signal. When a wolf is alone, it howls to signal its location to the rest of the pack. So if you heard it howling, it means there are others, maybe a pack of them." Carlos states.

"Wait, a pack of wolves?"

"No, I mean a pack of werewolves."

"You're seriously wasting my time on this?" James asked. "You know I'm picking Jade up in an hour."

"What you did on the lacrosse field; that was impossible."

"So, I made a good shot."

"No, you made an incredible shot. The way you moved, the speed, your reflexes, people can't suddenly do overnight and there's the hearing, the senses, and don't think I haven't noticed you don't need your inhaler anymore. You haven't used it since that night."

"I can't think about this now. We'll talk tomorrow, okay?"

"Tomorrow...! Don't you get it? The full moon is tonight!" Carlos shouted.

"What are you trying to do?" James asked. "I just made starting lineup. I have a date with a girl I can't believe actually wants to go out with me. Everything is somehow perfect in my life. Why are you trying to ruin it for me?"

"I'm trying to help! With the full moon, it's going to be too hard to resist and there's no going back. You're cursed, James. And it's not only that. The moon causes you to change; it's also when your bloodlust will be at its peak."

"Bloodlust..."

Carlos describes, "It's your urge to kill."

"I'm already starting to have an urge to kill, Carlos."

"You need to hear this. This change can be cause by your anger or anything that raises your pulse. And I've never seen anyone raise your pulse like Jade does! You have to cancel your date. You have to cancel your date. You have to call her." Carlos grabs James' jacket, pulling the cell phone out.

"What are you doing? Give me that!" James shouts.

"I'm just finding her number."

"Give it to me." He demands, voice low and guttural. Carlos looks up to see James' eyes flash yellow for a brief second. James yanks the phone out of Carlos' hand and shoves him against the wall. Pulling back before striking him, James instead lashes out at a desk chair, sending it flying across the room, tossed like it weighted nothing. Then, shaking with anger, he gazes up. "I didn't mean to do that." He apologizes.

He starts to help Carlos up, but Carlos flinches back. "I'm sorry, really. I didn't mean it. I have to go. I have to get ready for the party. I'm sorry." He apologizes again before grabbing his jacket and hurrying out.

Still shaken, Carlos gradually stands. He slowly picks up the desk chair, putting it back. But then he pauses. With a shaky hand, he turns the chair around to reveal claw marks, the chair's fabric slashed to ribbons.

_**[James's Room]**_

Towel around his waist, James yanks his closet door open and starts tossing clothes onto his bed. "Do you have a big date?" His mom, Brooke Diamond, stands at the door.

James turns around, "Mom, can I have a little privacy, please?"

"Hold on, what do we have here?" She approaches, feeling his chin with her thumb. "I think it might be time for you to start shaving."

Outside the house, James and his mom can be heard talking. _"I don't even have a razor."_ Then further down the street, their voices take on the same effect as those that James could hear when he was listening in on conversations at school.

"_You better borrow one of mine. I'll go get it. Stay right there."_ No less than a hundred yards away, but still within the line of sight of the house, someone stands beside a black Dodge Challenger, listening in on the conversation, Beck Oliver.

_**[Party]**_

In the backyard of a dimly lit house, James and Jade stand awkwardly among a crowd of drunk and high teenagers. James peers down at the table with the booze.

"So, what do you drink?" James asks, breaking the awkward silence between them.

"Um...I don't know..."

"Me either, actually. Maybe we should try root beer? Wait here. I'll get the keg." James walks away after getting a simple "Perfect" from Jade.

Near a blazing fire, James fills two cups at the crowded keg when a sound of a dog barking catches his attention. A huge Rottweiler in the yard next door just beyond a chain linked fence, barking at Beck. He stands behind the fire pit, staring straight at James. But then he shoots a look at Rottweiler. The dog stops barking instantly. Eyes locking on the animal, Beck gives an almost imperceptible no. Tail between its legs, the Rottweiler submissively lowers to a sitting position.

Satisfied, Beck turns back to James who grips the two overflowing cups in his hands and for the briefest second, Beck's eyes flash yellow.

"Dude, are you done?" A party goer asks. Stunned, James hands off the keg tap to the party-goer. When he looks back to the fire-pit, Beck is gone. James turns, glancing to the other teens in the yard, to the chain link fence, and then up to the roof where a shadowy figure seems to disappear just past the chimney. James steps back, trying to see if he actually did just witness Beck leaping twenty feet off the ground. But there's nothing there. Handing a cup to Jade, he keeps throwing nervous glances back at the outside porch of the house. He takes a gulp of the beer and then coughs, nearly spitting it out.

"This punch tastes terrible." James comments. Jade laughs, covering her mouth with her hand. "Now I see what they mean about an acquired taste."

Jade replies, "I've actually never been drunk. I usually go to parties and just stand there with a diet coke.

"Carlos and I got drunk on tequila one night. The next morning I felt like I had a flamethrower pointed at my forehead." James said.

"Okay, since neither of us is any good at drinking, how are you at dancing?" Jade asked.

"I'm much better...infinitely better..."

Under the driving pulse of techno, James takes her hand, pulling her into the crowd of dancing teenagers. Then as they begin moving, as Jade starts to smile back at him, the usually timid James begins to let go. His hands reach around her waist with the other teens pushing them closer. Bodies pressed against each other, her cheek brushes lightly at his.

Then through the crowd, James notices Cat dancing with Andre, grinding close to him, her fingers wrapped around the back of his neck. She presses her lips to Andre's locking him in a passionate kiss. As he eagerly kisses her back, sliding his hands down past her waist, Cat opens her eyes and looks right at James. She's staring at him as she kisses Trent. Unused to the attention of one beautiful girl, much less two, James finds himself dumbstruck until the bodies of the dancing teens push together to leave him alone with Jade again.

As James peers into Jade's eyes, for a second it almost looks as though they're about to kiss, then the thumping beat of the music begins driving faster, starting to sound almost like the quickening of a heartbeat...James' heartbeat. The sounds around him intensify, his fingers clench back, veins at the surface of his hands as he presses against the fabric of Jade's shirt. His upper lip pulls up momentarily to reveal a sharpened incisor.

Lights glaring in his eyes, James takes a hard swallow as his breathing tightens, sweat beading his temples. He loses the beat of the music, stepping back and pulling away. James excuses himself, "Sorry, I have to go...go to the bathroom."

"Are you okay?" She asks. But he hurries past her and into the hallway. Teeth clenched, a sudden wave of pain slams him against the wall, tremors shuddering through his body. Waiting in a line for the bathroom, Jo notices him against the wall, his arms wrapped around his stomach.

"James, are you alright?" Jo asks, but he doesn't answer, pushing through the crowd, trying to find an exit out of the house. But one door leads to two teens making out on a bed. Another to a smoke filled room crowded with stoners. He can't seem to find a way out.

Gasps sounding more like animalistic growls, he crashes through the kitchen, shoving past people to the open door and out to the backyard.

Jo notices Carlos near the fire-pit outside. "Hey, I just saw James leave. I think he had too much to drink." Jo informs him.

"What? What do you mean?" Carlos asked, obviously alarmed.

Before she can answer, a panicked party goer charges in from the back door. "The cops are here!" Suddenly, everyone is moving, darting for an escape.

_**[James' Room]**_

James stumbles into his room, slamming the door shut. But even he's turning the lock; another wave of pain wracks his body. He falls back, hitting his dresser and catching his reflection in the mirror where two glowing eyes stare back at him.

Crouched on the floor, breathing hard with sweat streaming down his forehead, James squeezes his eyes shut, trying to push back the animal inside when someone pounds on the door.

"Go away!" James shouts.

"James, it's me." Carlos calls out from the other side. Hearing the panic in his friend's voice, he pulls himself up. He unlocks the door, but only allows it to open an inch.

"Let me in." Carlos demands. "James, I can help."

"No!" Eyes still burning yellow, James stays hidden behind the door. "Listen, you have to find Jade. Take her home..." He stops speaking when Carlos interrupts.

"She's fine. I saw her get a ride. She's totally fine."

"Carlos, I think I know who it is."

Carlos demands, "Just let me in and we can talk."

"It's Beck. Beck Oliver is the werewolf. He's the one who bit me. He's the one who killed the girl in the woods!" James exclaimed.

James listens, but there's nothing but shocked silence from the other side of the door until, "James...Beck's the one who drove Jade from the party."

Bedroom window thrown open, James launches himself out from the second story fifteen feet up. When his feet hit the pavement, his crouched figure slowly draws up to reveal he's no longer struggling against the transformation; _he's given into it._

He takes off for the woods, searching for Jade. He reaches the Los Angeles preserve and jumps on Beck's car. He lies flat of the car's hood, looking in the car window for Jade. Neither she nor Beck are anywhere in sight. He jumps off and goes further into the woods.

**[Carlos]**

Carlos pulls into the West's driveway and quickly gets out. He rushes to the door and rings the doorbell. "Come, on, come on!" He mutters. He bangs on the door waiting for it to open. Soon, he is watching as Mrs. West opens the door. "Hi, Mrs. West, you have no idea who I am. I'm a friend of your daughter's. Uh, look, this is gonna sound crazy, um...really crazy actually. You know what? Crazy doesn't..." Carlos mumbles on and on. Mrs. West keeps looking at him as if he was strange.

"Jade." She turns to the stairs. "It's for you!"

Jade comes out of her room and when she spots Carlos, she slams her hands softly against the rail of the stairs. "Carlos."

_**[Forest]**_

James is running past trees in werewolf form. He jumps hills and runs on all fours like a werewolf would do. He looks all around, but nobody or nothing is in sight until he sees a black blazer jacket hanging on a tree branch and gets a flashback from when he was picking Jade up; it was her jacket.

"Where is she?!" James asks. Suddenly, a deep voice answers to him.

"She's safe...from you."

He looks in the direction his voice came from and Beck is right in front of him. Grunting, Beck grabs him. They roll down the hills, wrestling each other. Beck slams James against a tree and grows.

"What did you do with her?" James asked, concerned if Jade was safe or hurt, or still alive, or even dead.

"Shush, quiet." He warns as soon as he hears a twig crunch. "It's too late. They're already here. Run." He runs away from him. James starts running, but an arrow comes charging to him and nails his arm to the tree.

He screams, trying to get it out as he sees three hunters come out from the shadows. They are looking at him and the middle on is pointing a crossbow at him. James glares as the one hunter in the center takes a couple steps toward him. "Take him." He orders.

Beck comes out of the shadows aiming for the hunters. Out of nowhere, Beck pulls two of the hunters back against trees and they don't get up. The last hunter standing looks back. Beck rushes to James and breaks him free from the tree as the hunter faces the other direction, holding out a gun. James screams in pain and follows Beck.

They run to a random tree far away from the hunters and James leans on it, asking, "Who were they?"

"Those were hunters; the kind that has been hunting us for centuries."

James raises his voice when he responds, "Us...? You mean you! You did this to me!"

"Is it really so bad, James?" He asks. "That you can see better, hear more clearly, move faster than any human could ever hope? You've been given something that some people could kill for. The bite is a gift."

"I don't want it." James states.

"You will. And you're gonna need me if you want to learn how to control it. So you and I, James...we're brother's now." Beck walks away, leaving James alone.

_**[Next Day - Road]**_

James is walking on the outline of the road near the forest when Carlos pulls up beside him. Getting in, Carlos hands him a clean shirt. "Do you know what actually worries me most?" James asked a few seconds later.

"If you say Jade, I'm gonna punch you in the head." Carlos comments. James was stunned by his answer, but he thought he was teasing. In case he wasn't, he didn't say her name.

"She probably hates me now."

"Ugh." Carlos groans. "I doubt that, but you might want to come up with a pretty amazing apology. Or, you know you could just tell her the truth and reveal in the awesomeness of the fact that you're a freaking werewolf." Carlos suggested and James looked at him like he was crazy.

"Okay, that's a bad idea."

"Hey, we'll get through this. Come on, if I have to, I'll chain you up myself on full moon nights. I had a boa once. I could do it." Carlos tried to convince him. James scoffed and Carlos looked at him with a half-smile.

_**[Hollywood Arts]**_

At the end of school, James sits outside in his Lacrosse gear when Jade walks passed him. She notices him jump up and follow hr. "So, what happened? You left me stranded at the party."

"Yeah, I know, I know. I'm really sorry, I am." James apologized. "But you're gonna have to trust that I had a really good reason." He continued. Jade stopped walking and turned to face him.

"Did you get sick?" She asked.

"I definitely had an attack of something."

She's unconvinced. "Am I gonna get an explanation?"

"Can you just find it in your heart to just trust me on this one?"

"Am I gonna regret this?" She asked.

"You probably are." He answers. Jade laughs. "So, is that a yes on a second chance?"

"Yes." Jade responded. A car horn goes off and Jade looks to see her dad. "That's my dad. I better go." Jade walked off. James turns around to walk away, but turns back around to discover that Jade's dad was the one who shot him in the arm with an arrow the couple nights ago.

**A/N: And there's the first chapter! **

**Next Chapter Info - Second Chance at First Line: Aware that he's become a werewolf, James must deal with hunters trying to catch them, another werewolf, and the pressures of everyday teen life.**


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